‘That’s a door open that I trust and hope the festival will keep open’: Ava DuVernay makes history as first African American woman to compete for Venice Film Festival’s top prize

Ava DuVernay is a shining star in film and television, and she is changing the course of history today. With the world premiere of her latest film Origin tonight in the Sala Grande, DuVernay becomes the first African-American female filmmaker in the 80-year history of the Venice Film Festival to have a film in competition for the Golden Lion. This is a testament to her extraordinary talent and commitment to telling rich stories often centered around Black experiences.

According to Variety, the director said at the Venice Film Festival press conference for Origin on Wednesday that she had previously been urged not to apply to the festival because she would not be accepted. She stated:

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been told, ‘Don’t apply to Venice, you won’t get in, it won’t happen.’ And this year it happened, something happened that hadn’t happened in eight decades before. We know that’s a door open that I trust and hope the festival will keep open.”

DuVernay, whose 2012 drama Middle of Nowhere earned her the Best Director award at Sundance, making her the first Black woman to achieve this accolade, further explained.

“It’s very rare for two Black filmmakers who work as a producing team to make a film that leaves the country. Black filmmakers are told people who love films in other parts of the world don’t care about our stories and don’t care about our films.” 

The official synopsis for Origin, starring Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and Jon Bernthal, states that the film “chronicles the remarkable life and work of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson as she investigates the genesis of injustice and uncovers a hidden truth that affects us all.” 

The 37-day production Origin jumps from Wilkerson’s own tragic experiences to depictions of Nazi Germany, Jim Crow-era southern America, and the heartbreaking treatment endured by members of the Dalit “untouchable” caste in India. The film depicts how those in the lower castes have been dehumanized and kept at the bottom of society via cruelty and intimidation, with no chance to marry into the upper castes or improve their assigned lot in life.